Strider Re-Born
by JAYSEN
Summary: Naruto's been saddled with teammates that hate him and heads out into the forest to figure out where he fits in the world. However, he will come to find a new inspiration and with it, the will to go on and a new code to live his life by. With the help of his sensei, and the guidance of the spirits of his parents and predesessor, coupled with his iron will, anything is possible.
1. Chapter 1

_I just got the Marvel vs. Capcom Origins from PSN and I was struck by inspiration to write this...It took only two days to crank out, since my muse showed her obvious favor to this idea._

_**WAVE COUNTRY...**_

"Dammit!" Naruto swore as he swept from the house he and his _team_ were staying in.

Team 7 had been dispatched on their first C-Rank mission to Wave Country and so far, the way it was going was making Naruto want to slam his face into a meat slicer. First, Tazuna was nothing short of condescending to them and sniping at them every chance he got until they had been attacked by a pair of nuke nin that he _conveniently_ forgot to inform them were after him. They decided to carry on the mission until they were ambushed again, this time by a maniac named Zabuza. Now, the Demon Brothers were bad enough, but Zabuza was a full Jounin and ex-ANBU Captain, as well as one of the former Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. He and Sasuke tried to fight, but got their asses kicked while Sakura sat back and was generally useless while Kakashi managed to match him blow for blow until he got caught in an entrapment jutsu. Naruto managed to think up a plan to bust him out on the spot, allowing Kakashi to finish the fight. Before Kakashi could seal Zabuza's fate, a Kiri Oi-nin _killed_ him and dragged him away, Kakashi collapsing in exhaustion, forcing Naruto to expend more chakra to create Kage Bunshin to carry him and set up a perimeter around them while Tazuna broke down and led them to his house to rest.

Upon reaching the house, they were welcomed in by a lovely woman, Tsunami, the old man's daughter. She showed them a room where they could lay Kakashi down to rest up until supper. In the meantime, Sasuke brooded, Sakura fawned over him, and Naruto decided to explore the house a bit until he ran into Tazuna's grandson, Inari. The boy only sneered at him before stomping away, giving a lousy first impression. Supper was ready, but Naruto's teammates left him to carry Kakashi down by himself, making his already deteriorating mood worsen. Kakashi sighed and told him to just let it go for the sake of the mission as they reached the table and sat down. As they ate dinner that night, Tazuna told them more of what happened to their land and who was oppressing them, Naruto telling him that they could handle it. Inari lashed out at the ninja with his sob story, but Naruto's mood was already in the toilet as he fired right back.

_"Shut up, you spoiled brat! Just like the Teme...Always bitching and whining, thinking everyone should feel sorry for you when there's always someone else out there that had it worse! I'm sick of it!" Naruto bellowed in disgust. He knew of such people, himself being one of them but he never whined or even spoke of it. Of course, just like clockwork, Sasuke's cheerleader opened her pie hole...loudly._

_ "Shut up, Naruto-baka! Never talk about Sasuke-kun like that! He lost his whole clan in one night! At least he isn't an orphan whose parents probably dumped you in the orphanage!" She retorted callously, making Kakashi glower at her, but before he could get on her case, Naruto was out the door already. _

_ "I have NEVER been so ashamed of any students I've had as I am of you two right now." Kakashi growled._

_ "So we hurt the dobe's feelings...He'll be back." Sasuke drawled in irritation as he turned back to his meal, Sakura simply watching him._

_ 'Those two had better hope he comes back...Sensei would have skinned these two alive for this.'_ _Kakashi thought as he returned to eating, hoping Naruto would be alright. _

Kakashi didn't dislike Naruto, far from it. He saw a lot of his old friend Obito in him and Naruto was generally friendly and easy-going, if not a bit gung ho about training since he became a ninja. He knew that his guts, drive, and sheer determination woud take him farther than he could imagine if he kept up the pace he was setting, with the proper guidance. The trouble was that the council wanted him to focus exclusively on the Uchiha and had their ways of getting what they wanted, by extension Sasuke getting what he wanted.

_ 'Maybe I could ask Gai for help...Even if he's a complete lunatic, the way he trained that Lee kid into a Taijutsu machine was nothing short of a miracle...I just hope Naruto doesn't pick up on their habits.' The copy nin thought as he continued with his meal, bringing us to where Naruto in now, in the forest._

"Stupid teme...Stupid Sakura..." Naruto muttered as he kept on walking, or would have if he hadn't stepped into a sink hole that seemed to drag on.

"HOLY CRAP!" Naruto screamed as he fell, hitting the bottom with a sickening thud.

He lay there for a few moments as his inner resident got to work on saving his hide and by extension it's own, putting him back together. After that excruciatingly painful process was done, he stood up slowly and looked around the chasm he fell into. It was wierd, it looked like some of the chasm walls were made of metal, poking at it with a kunai.

"Huh...Wierd." He muttered as he continued onward, looking for a way back up.

Soon, the rocky areas had ceased and he was now walking down a fully metallic hallway, the lights coming on as he approached. All of the doors he saw either wouldn't budge or they had been caved in and destroyed, so he just continued walking down the hallway looking for an exit. After a few hours of wandering, he walked into an enclosed room with something in a case. It looked interesting, so he went to check it out. Upon getting there, he saw that it was a sword but it was different from the ones the ANBU carried and even the one that Zabuza freak used to nearly hack them to pieces. It looked like it was bladed on both sides with a basic hilt, but it also had a second handle coming out of the side.

"Like those twirly weapons I saw the Uchiha police use...What were those things called...Tonfa! Yeah...Kinda like those, but cooler." Naruto mused as he touched the case to get a better look at it.

Without warning, the case seemed to come apart and retract, allowing access to the item within but before he could reach out for it, a screen in fornt of him blazed to life, showing a man with a red, flowing scarf around the lower half of his face, kind of like how Kakashi looks but with brown hair. He also wore a blue gi top with ninja pants tied up at the ankles with tape and ninja sandals. He was also muscular but fit and trim. Soon, Naruto was watching this man in action, wielding the very blade before him with deadly efficiency as he sliced through metallic objects as if they were paper, performing mind boggling acrobatics and moving at speeds that made that Zabuza guy look like he was standing still. The sight was truly awe-inspiring to the young fledgling ninja, who was still searching for his niche in the world. Finally, the demonstration ended and a video message was playing out, like a final will and testament.

_**"To whom ever found this place, I was known as Strider Hiryu. I was a ninja who stood up against evil and struck it down where ever to arose in the world alongside my fellow Striders, but we were betrayed by one of our own and the world fell into complete ruin."**_Hiryu explained as he told the tragic tale of the demise of the Striders and the world as they knew it.

This being known only as the Grand Master had unleashed unknown forces upon their world in an attempt to conquer it, but it ran out of control and the Striders fell one by one trying to stop these demons from destroying everything. In the end, Hiryu and a lone man known only as the Rikudou Sennin managed to seal away the demons somehow, but the man died doing it and Hiryu was near death himself.

_**"If you take up my old sword, the Cypher Blade, you must swear to always stand up for justice and what your heart tells you is right. Bring honor to the Striders of old..."**_ The man implored as the image faded.

"Wow..." Naruto whispered.

The young boy was in awe that he was being entrusted with such a weapon, but he also swore that he would uphold his new Nindo, to always fight for justice and what he knew was right. This man's plea just struck a chord in him, appealing to the very best of his nature. He then thought back on what the nation of Wave had been suffering at the hands of this Gatou creep as well as the injustice he suffered in the village, and it just seemed to click. He also knew that he was far, FAR from the level Hiryu was in his prime and would need some serious help if he ever hoped to achieve his new goal. Being Hokage could wait if the entire world could possibly need him. He reached out for the blade and grasped the hilt, feeling smooth and cool in his hand as well as light as a feather. He was wondering how it worked and the sword began to vibrate gently and blades began to glow with a soft yellow light for a moment. He swung the sword lightly to test it and he hacked the metal stand in half easily.

"Cool! All I had to do was think about it!" Naruto cheered as he found what he did to turn the blades on to make them turn off.

He spied the holster that Hiryu himself once used and fastened it to himself. After his new weapon was securely fastened to his back, the young jinchuuriki left to find a way out. After another few hours of searching, he found a passageway that led to a cliffside under a bluff that Tazuna's village now stood on. Nearby was a small ledge that was very well hidden, but it provided him with a way back up. No sooner than he completed his trek back up, the pathway collapsed behind him, ensuring that what was buried down there stayed hidden away from the world. It was probably better this way. With a sigh, he trudged back home, being careful to avoid being seen by Gatou's thugs. He finally made it back to Tazuna's house as the sun peaked over the horizon and was about to sneak inside his room when a voice caught his attention.

"Glad to see you're back, Naruto. Feeling any better?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah...I actually do, Kakashi-sensei. I feel like...I know what I want to do with my life, like I had an api...afip...er..." Naruto replied, fishing for the right word.

"An epiphany." Kakashi provided.

"Yeah that. Thanks, sensei! I had one of those out on my walk last night. I was thinking about what that old fart Tazuna said...About what happened here. I want to help people who can't help themselves, like I used to be. I just know what I want to do with my life and with..." Naruto left it hanging, gesturing to his stomach where the Kyuubi was sealed away.

_'I couldn't be any more proud of you, Naruto. All of that power, and you want to use it to bring good to the world instead of abuse it. Minato-sensei, Sandaime-sama, and Kushina-sama would be so proud of you...But what is that on his back?'_ Kakashi thought, looking at the hilt sticking up over his student's shoulder.

"Naruto...Where did you find that?" He questioned. Naruto looked hesitant, but broke down and told his sensei everything, as well as how it inspired him to make the vow he did.

"Can I see it for a second?" He asked, Naruto nodding and handing him the sword, but it let out a shocking pulse of electricity once he touched it.

"Hmm...It seems as if only you can use it. That's a very good thing. It means no one can use it against you. Hmmm..." Kakashi mused, looking around the room and his eyes settled on his kunai pack at his side, drawing one out.

"Let's test it out. Try cutting this kunai." He requested. Naruto nodded and tried, but it was like a blunted edge.

"Huh? That's not right...Wait! I forgot to turn it on..." Naruto muttered, his mind focusing to activate the blade.

The sword was now gently humming with power as he barely even touched the kunai and cut it in half. Kakashi stared at the smoking remains of his kunai in stunned awe for a moment before looking back at his student.

"Naruto...We really need to teach you how to use that thing before you accidentally lop your own head off." Kakashi suggested, seeing Naruto nearly do just that. Once Naruto turned it off and staved off an acute heart attack in Kakashi, the one eyed Jounin began to think on what styles would work with such an obscure weapon.

_'Hmmm...It's like a bladed Tonfa. A DEADLY one. Maybe a hodge-podge of Tonfa and Ninja-to techniques would work for him, since it looks like it can be used either way. It also seems to respond to his thoughts, being able to activate it as such, so since it is blunt when turned off, it is safe to train with. I've also yet to tell him about the true benefits of the Kage Bunshin. I think he's one of the only people in the world that can actually use it safely. Kushina-sama...He definitely has your luck.'_ The Copy-nin thought out as the door swung open to reveal Sasuke and Sakura, looking none too pleased to see Naruto.

"You idiot! Where did you go last night and what's that stupid looking toy you're playing with?!" She screached.

"Nothing. Just a toy." Naruto just said plainly, wanting to keep his new weapon a secret from them.

Kakashi knew why Naruto wanted to keep this a secret from them. They would do nothing but demand it from him and might even do something nasty to get it. It would be better if they thought is was a useless toy.

"It's an interesting one, thought." Kakashi backed him up as he addressed them all.

"Now...I wanted to tell you all about my suspicions about that nin we fought yesterday. I believe he is still alive. You see, Hunter nin are supposed to burn the body on the spot, but this one took the body with him. Any ideas why?" He asked. He could see them wracking their heads for reasons, but Naruto answered after thinking for a moment.

"That sneaky bastard...That Hunter nin was working _with _him! A bait and switch!" Naruto yelled.

"Don't be an idiot, dobe. There's no way that could happen." Sasuke scoffed as he went back to thinking.

"Yeah! Just shut up and let him think for a minute!" Sakura glowered at him, Kakashi sighing in disgust.

"Sakura, I think you are the one that needs to shut your mouth and Sasuke, Naruto was right on the money. I'd expect no less from Konoha's premier prankster, since tricks like this are right up his alley. Yes. That Hunter nin was likely a fake, Zabuza's accomplice hiding in plain sight to bail him out if things were too close for comfort." Kakashi spoke out, admonishing the other two students.

"So...Zabuza is still...alive?" Sakura wimpered.

"Yes, he is and he will be back. We will need to train in order to stand a chance against him and his accomplice once they do strike, so I will be teaching you all something new. Help me stand..." Kakashi stated, Naruto and Sasuke helping him to his feet. He then grabbed a pair of crutches and had them follow him out to a small clearing in the forest nearby.

"What are we doing here, Kakashi? I need to get stronger." Sasuke scowled, nothing but condescendence in his tone.

"We will be learning to climb trees." He said plainly with an eye smile.

"Whatever. If you're not going to teach us anything, I'm leaving." Sasuke scoffed.

"Ah ah ah, Sasuke-chan..." Kakashi mock scolded, hobbling up to the nearest tree, then he hobbled _up_ the tree as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"I never said anything about being allowed to use your hands." Kakashi taunted.

"Wow...Just like Hiryu..." Naruto marvelled at the feat before he asked a question.

"How did you do that, sensei?" He asked.

"I'm very glad you asked that, Naruto..." Kakashi replied genially, explaining the mechanics behind the exercise but he took Naruto off to the side for a moment.

_"Naruto...I know that your control is simply horrible, but that isn't your fault. For one, you have to fight the Kyuubi for control and two, your stores are far greater than even my own but being so young means you can't properly control your power yet. That said, I will tell you a secret about the Kage Bunshin. The experience every clone racks up will pass back to you once you dismiss them. This means..."_ Kakashi hinted, letting Naruto figure that part out.

_"Holy...I can use them for exercises like this, can't I?" _Naruto asked, more to himself.

_ "Yes...That's right. Go ahead and give it a shot."_ Kakashi suggested and sat down on a stump to rest.

_**KAGE BUNSHIN!**_

Five clones appeared beside him, waiting for instructions. After giving them their marching orders, along with how Kakashi told them to do it, the clones and original set to work on the exercise.

"What are you doing, you baka?! Quit fooling around!" Sakura yelled at him from the top of her tree. She had completed the exercise already, but she was already exhausted.

"Hmm...You _do_ have excellent control, but that's only due to your extremely small reserves if how exhausted you are is any indicator. After a short rest, you will be doing this for the remainder of the session to build up your reserves, so I would save any scathing remarks if I were you." Kakashi remarked.

Naruto continued plugging away at the exercise, slowly figuring out how it worked since Sakura was being a royal bitch and Sasuke was being an asshole, business as usual. Finally, one of his clones made a major breakthrough, making it to the top of the tree and dispelled, giving Naruto the key to the exercise. Getting a good running start, he pelted his way up the tree and completed the exercise. This of course upset the other two for reasons we already know and they had some rather terse things to say.

"Oi dobe...How did you do that? Did that jutsu have something to do with it?" Sasuke demanded.

"Not really...It just helps me focus, that's all." Naruto quickly explained.

"Heh...Figures a dobe like you would need training wheels for everything..." Sasuke retorted with a snort as he went back to his attempts, Naruto sighing in relief that he'd thrown off Sasuke this time.

Kakashi was watching the whole exchange with a smirk. Naruto was many times smarter than they could comprehend and he could tell that the crafty blond would milk their ignorance of all it was worth.

_'He's definitely shaping up to be a far better shinobi than his teammates...'_ Kakashi thought with amusement as he watched Naruto sit down on a stump and think for a few moments before looking in his direction.

"Hey um...Sensei? Is there any other exercise like that?" He asked.

"Glad you asked...I'm glad to see that you want to improve on an area that you're lacking in. Come with me for a moment and I'll show you the next step." Kakashi offered as he hoisted himself to his feet and guided Naruto off to the stream next to where they were training.

"Now...The next level up from tree climbing is water walking. This is considerably harder, since the amount of chakra needed to stay afloat will vary constantly. You will need you feel it out and once you have it figured out, you'll wonder how you went without it for so long." Kakashi joked as he watched Naruto cautiously apply what he learned from Tree Climbing and stepped out onto the flowing water.

He slowly stepped out onto the water and for a few steps, it seemed as though it was working, so he got bolder...And paid for it. That water was frigidly cold and he hopped out of there like he'd been burned.

"That was harder than I thought..." Naruto muttered to himself as he conjured up more clones to assist him with the exercise.

Soon, just like with the Tree Climbing, he quickly got the hang of it and was soon running and jumping on the water to experiment with this new skill.

"Heh...Awesome! Hey sensei...You think I could spar with my clones on the water?" Naruto asked, but before Kakashi could answer someone else did.

"Don't be stupid, Naruto-baka! You can't spar with clones!" Sakura scolded him, but Kakashi had a reply for her.

"Sakura...Do you even know what jutsu Naruto's been using in front of you this whole time?" Kakashi asked in a scoldig tone of his own.

"It's just the regular Bunshin, not like he has anything special." Sakura sniffed.

"And you call yourself the Top Kunoichi...That's the KAGE Bunshin...A very special clone jutsu that's actually stronger than the Mizu Bunshin Zabuza used." Kakashi replied, revealing this only to make sure his other students realized that messing with him wasn't the smartest thing to do.

"WHAT?!" They heard Sasuke bellow and stomp over to where they were.

"Give me that jutsu dobe!" He demanded angrily.

"Sasuke...That jutsu is something that even full Jounin have to be careful with. If you split yourself too far, you will die. Naruto's reserves are some of the highest I've ever seen in anyone and he's still young. High cost jutsu like that are tailor made for someone like him that can handle the extreme chakra costs of using it." Kakashi reasoned.

"I don't care! If that dobe can do it, so can I!" He retorted like an angry toddle being denied a toy.

"As you are now, you would only get one clone and pass out if you're lucky. It's far too advancd for someone like you, but as for how Naruto got it, that is classified information and I will NOT discuss it further. If you try to get the answer from Naruto, you will be severely punished for breaking an A-Rank Secret." Kakashi explained, the threat of his true authority to punish them hanging over them.

Sakura's parents were only civilians, so her threats were as empty as her abilities. Sasuke was the problem, but he'd burn that bridge when he crossed it. Heaving a sigh, he set them back to their tasks and returned to see Naruto trying his hand at using his new weapon to fend off his clones, but meeting with little to no success.

"Oi, Naruto...Come over here for a moment." Kakashi requested, Naruto doing as he was told.

"What's up, sensei?" He asked.

"Your form...We'll need to work on it, but after I recover and when we get home. Until then, I don't want you using your weapon...What was it called again?" Kakashi inquired.

"Cypher Blade...That's what it was called."

"Yeah...The Cypher, again unless the situation is critical. I want to train you with weapons myself so you can handle it safely and effectively. I also don't want Sasuke or Sakura seeing you train iwth it or they will get suspicious. Agreed?" Kakashi requested.

As expected, Naruto deflated a bit, but understood what his sensei was talking about. Should they find out that it really was a weapon, it would open a can of worms that he really didn't feel like dealing with.

"Got it, sensei." He agreed as he returned to Taijutsu spars with is clones, Kakashi pointing things out here and there as well as how to fix it. He learned more about Taijutsu in just a few hours than all of his time in the Academy.

Night time fell upon them quickly, so Kakashi called all training to a halt for the night so they could get some rest and eat dinner. Dinner was a silent affair, if onw could ignore the several snide remarks sent at the blond from his teammates in name only. After dinner, Naruto flopped down onto his sleeping bag and pondered what his new Nindo truly meant. He now had something that might conflict with his dream to become Hokage and would have to choose between the good of his village and the good of the world someday.

_'Can I really do it? Abandon my dream of being Hokage? Can I really show the world that I can use that damned Fox's power to help people?' _Naruto thought, his mind full of doubts and fears as he fell into a turbulent sleep.

_**DREAMSCAPE...NARUTO...**_

_His eyes slowly opened up to see nothing but white as far as the eye could see and sat up._

_ "Where the hell am I?" He thought as he tried to look around, but as he turned again, he was face to face with the man who inspired him...Strider Hiryu himself._

_ "Wha...? You're..." Naruto stammered and sputtered._

_ "So...You are the one who vowed to take up my blade and oath..." He commented as he looked into Naruto's life and saw the very reason why he wanted to dedicate his life to this new cause._

_ 'This boy...He contains one of the nine demons and has been tortured for it, yet he remains so strong. He seems to be a worthy successor, but he doubts himself. He needs confidence in himself if he is to improve and grow into the guardian he wishes to be.' Hiryu thought._

_ "What are you doing here? I thought you died a long time ago!" Naruto exclaimed._

_ "Indeed I did, young Naruto. However, you found my final resting place and final message. You swore that you would uphold the honor of the Striders in your day and age, so I had to speak to you myself. However...I am not alone. Two others wish to see you one more time..." Hiryu stated as he stepped aside to reveal two more people. One was Yondaime, his first idol, with a beautiful red haired woman next to him, who were walking toward him._

_ "Yondaime-sama?! What are you doing here?!" Naruto yelled again, making the two chuckle._

_ "He has your voice and personality, Kushina-koi." He replied._

_ "But he has your looks on top of those adoreable whisker marks, 'ettebane. I bet the girls wouldn't leave him alone, like you, Minato-koi." She added with a giggle._

_ "Wha...? How do you know me?" Naruto asked._

_ "Of course we would know our own son...Naruto." Minato responded to him, making his jaw drop._

_ "Y-you mean...The Yondaime himself is my...And she's my...?" The shorter blond asked in total shock._

_ "Yep...Got it one, kiddo!" Kushina winked as she swooped in and embraced her son for the first time in thirteen years, since he was born. _

_ They looked into his life and were shocked and appalled that the village not only disregarded Minato's dying wish, but actively tried to harm and sabotage their son. The pair were very thankful for people like Iruka and Kakashi, the latter throwing himself at the chance to teach Naruto even if that meant having to deal with the Uchiha. The Sandaime and his family also tried to help where they could, but the council was more corrupt than ever before, something Minato tried to cut out during his tenure. His old friend, Hiashi, also tried, but his infuriating clan stayed his hand. Jiraiya hadn't been watching over Naruto as he promised and that infuriated the two parents, but Kakashi was picking up the slack. They then saw what Naruto had stumbled across and heard his pledge and his confession to Kakashi. They were completely overwhelmed with pride in their son, but understood the inner conflict he was facing at this point._

_ "My son...I know that being Hokage is your dream and now you believe this new oath you swore will conflict with that. I'll give you a little father to son advice on that. The world is a much larger place and Konoha is just a small part of it. There will be people in need of you all over the world, so confining yourself to one place is a bit on the selfish side." Minato advised his son._

_ "But...The village..." Naruto stammered ou, but his mother shook her head._

_ "The village can take care of itself, Naru-chan. You promised that you would battle evil and injustice where ever you found it. To use your might to uphold the weak, your new blade to defend the helpless." Kushina told him, her playful face now serious._

_ "I'm sure Kakashi will understand, as will Sarutobi." Minato added, giving Naruto more and more confidence in his new goal._

_ "I hope that this has instilled you with a new sense of self-confidence and strengthened your resolve, young ninja. I will always watch over you as you bring pride to all we have stood for." Hiryu stated proudly, fading from view._

_ "Farewell...Until we meet again." His voice echoed as it faded completely. He then turned to his newly revealed parents._

_ "Why? Why didn't anyone tell me?" Naruto pleaded with them._

_ "Son...We had many enemies inside our own village that would love to see you dead solely because you are my son. Add to that how many outside our village would love to get their hands on you...We asked Sarutobi and the rest to keep that from you to keep you safe until you could protect youself...But you have grown so much...I think you are ready. Ask Sarutobi for the Special Scroll that contains one of my special kunai, as well as your birth certificate and keys to our house. It's no mansion, but cozy enough. He will know what you are talking about and tell him Minato and Kushina told you to ask and about his secret drawer." Minato instructed._

_ "My baby...I am so proud of you. Your father and I will always love and watch over you..." She confessed to him tearfully as she let him go, the pair returning to whatever afterlife they came from and Naruto waking up from the dream..._

_**END...**_

Naruto woke up with a start from the dream that seemed so real. He felt their touch, their emotions, but knew one thing...They were all proud of him and the extra burden he decided to take of his own volition. Hiryu, his predecessor, wished for him to carry on their code of honor, with the blessings of his newly discovered parents further bolstering his resolve. Hell, the identity of said parents didn't matter to him, he was just happy knowing about them and that they didn't just abandon him. Now, one thing remained...

"I need to get serious." Naruto told himself, his iron clad will once again shining through as he got himself up and ready for another day full of important training.

Everyone had awoken and had come down for breakfast, Sasuke and Sakura throwning their usual put downs and insults at him, but his face was a mask of pure will and determination. He let their words jsut pass harmlessly by as he continued to eat his meal, say his thanks to Tsunami, and head outside to further train himself in the exercises Kakashi taught him. Kakashi himself noticed the changes in his blond student almost right away.

_'He looks more focused...Dedicated...Committed. I think he came to terms with what this new goal will require him to give up and made his peace with it. Good. He's already solved the first step all by himself. Now, the real training can begin...Once I'm healed that is.' _Kakashi thought as he finished his dinner and led the team out to finish training, a cycle which would continue for the next few days.

_**FOUR DAYS LATER...**_

The week Kakashi predicted it would take Zabuza to return had finally elapsed, but there was still a job to do. He felt that Gatou may threaten Tazuna's family, so he left Naruto there to protect them while he dragged the other two with him to the bridge to protect Tazuna while he kept an eye on them, especially after what they pulled...

_ After the first day of having his new blade and calling, Sasuke was already growing suspicious of Naruto's improvement, as well as the mysterious object on his back that he claimed was only a toy. He snuck around until he found his blond teammate hard at work on his Taijutsu, which Sasuke had to grudgingly admit was looking much better, while the strange object was resting against a tree stump. He decided to sneak over and have a look for himself and if it really was a weapon of some kind, he would just have to claim it in the name of the Uchiha, not like the Dobe could do anything about it. He reached out and grasped the handle only for his entire being to explode with pain, an excruciatingly painful electric shock ripping it's way through his body before he dropped it, his shock turning into a burning rage as he stomped over to where Naruto was training and threw a brace of kunai at him, which he barely avioded._

_ "DOBE! What is that thing?! I know it's not a toy!" He demanded._

_ "That's none of your business, Sasuke." Naruto replied, his tone cold and firm, something that Naruto had never done before and it slightly spooked him._

_ "Sasuke...What excuse could you possibly give for attacking Naruto like that?" Kakashi asked from behind a tree. He had been recovering rapidly and was able to get around without the crutches now._

_ "What is that thing he has? I demand to know!" He...well...demanded, Sakura piping up behind him, but Kakashi shut her up with a withering glare._

_ "That is none of your business, Sasuke. Now, answer my question, or there will be HELL to pay for attacking a teammate on a mission." Kakashi growled._

_ "That weapon...I want it. Now." The spoiled boy stated._

_ "The weapon has already told you that it doesn't want you. Take my advice and drop this now, Sasuke." Kakashi warned. _

_ He seemed to back off, but he tried to steal it again two days later, only this time he had Sakura do it. Kakashi now had them accompany him everywhere because they could not be trusted, leading up to this point in time._

Kakahsi, the two Genin, and Tazuna arrived at the bridge just in time to see all of Tazuna's workforce down and out, all of them either already dead or dying. One man saw them coming and pointed into the thick mist.

"D-demon..." Was all he could grate out before death claimed him.

"Sasuke. Sakura. Protect the client. Whatever you do, do NOT let him get close." Kakashi ordered as the mist cleared away to reveal Zabuza and his mystery accomplice.

"So nice of you to bring the old fart here, Kakashi. Saves us the trouble of hunting him down." Zabuza commented, shifting attention slightly.

"Haku. Do it." Zabuza ordered, the masked nin doing as he was told but was intercepted by Sasuke.

"Oh ho...Someone who might actually be a challenge to Haku. Have fun." Zabuza chuckled darkly as he now turned his attention to Kakashi.

"So...Where were we last time..." Zabuza mock thought as he clashed with Kakashi.

"Oh yeah...I was about to kill you until that blond brat got in the way. He's not here to save your hide this time." He sneered.

_**TAZUNA'S HOUSE**_

Speaking of said blond brat, he was back at Tazuna's house and patrolling the area for any trouble when a scream got his attention.

"Dammit, they got past me!" He muttered as he pelted back to the house at full tilt, having his new wepon on him at the time.

He hopped onto the roof silently to see two of Gatou's thugs dragging Inari and Tsunami out of the house and throwing them down, their swords drawn.

"Gatou said he wanted the woman, but didn't say anything about the brat. Sorry kid...Looks like you're disposable." The shorter one with the bandanna smirked, not sorry at all.

"If you hurt him, I'll...I bite off my tongue!" Tsunami threatened. She knew they needed a hostage and a corpse made a poor one.

"Tch...Fine. You're lucky brat...Your mama saved your ass, but now her's belongs to Gatou-sama. With a little luck, maybe he'll give us a go with this sweet little number. Besides, those ninja at the bridge are being slaughtered by Zabuza by now." The taller one with the tattoos and eyepatch laughed darkly as they started to lead her away, Inari not being able to do anything but cry.

Naruto had seen and heard enough.

_'Bastards...Looks like I'm needed.'_ Naruto thought as he lept down and surprized the two, introducing a kunai to each of their throats.

"Naruto-kun! Thank you!" Tsunami cried as he got back up again.

"I need to get to the bridge! You two find a place to hide!" He ordered the two of them as he bolted off for the bridge.

_**UNFINISHED BRIDGE...**_

Back at the bridge the battle raged on with Sakura not being able to do anything but standby and guard Tazuna. Kakashi was even with Zabuza, but the fight had quickly grown sour for Sasuke. He was skilled, but he grossly underestimated his opponent and was paying the price for it. Haku was a user of a rare sub-element bloodline, Hyouton, which allowed the user to manipulate ice at will. This, coupled with unparalleled speed, were overwhelming the arrogant Uchiha. However, during the middle of the fight, Sasuke managed to awaken his own bloodline, the Sharingan, and managed to fight back, although not much.

"Heh...Now that I have these eyes, you've got no chance." Sasuke gloated, but Haku scoffed and wove through a string of complex seals.

"Be careful with your overconfidence, Uchiha-san...It can cost you dearly." Haku warned.

_**HYOUTON HIJUTSU : MAKYO HYOUSHO!**_

The water vapor that was thick in the air solidified around them, forming a ide of crystalline ice mirrors that Haku seemed to melt into. He then bagen to attack Sasuke succesively, his senbon slowly wearing Sasuke down with smaller injuries until he could no longer fight.

"It looks as if our fun has ended, Uchiha-san. It is now time for you to die." Haku told him calmly as he readied a final brace of senbon aimed at his heart, but a sudden presence made itself known behind him, slicing through the mirror with ridiculous ease, and Haku along with it.

Naruto stared down at the bisected nin he had just killed, his third kill today, but didn't have time to ponder it, reaching Sasuke who was in bad shape and barely conscious.

"Hey teme...You alright?" Naruto asked. Sasuke scowled at being saved by Naruto, but had no energy to say anything, Naruto simply dragging him over to where Sakura and Tazuna were.

"Naruto! Is he alright?!" She asked.

"Yeah...He'll be fine, just a little beat up is all." Naruto explained to her, a bit shocked that she wasn't screeching at him. He was about to go help Kakashi, but she stopped him.

"Thank you...For saving him." She thanked him honestly, if not a bit forced.

"I'll take what I can get. You're welcome." He replied as he launched off to help fend off Zabuza.

Over with the Jounin, Zabuza could hardly believe what he just saw. The blond brat managed to surprize Haku, slicing him in half along with his mirror with a strange looking sword.

"Oi...Brat. What the hell is that thing?" Zabuza asked with a wary tone, but before anyone else could speak, a sharp rapping sound against the stone surface of the bridge echoed out.

"So...You and your brat got beaten like a couple of whipped dogs. Good thing I never intended to pay you." Gatou sneered at them, turning to his mercenaries.

"Alright! Kill all of the shinobi, but bring me any females there might be and don't hurt them too much! I can sell a kunoichi for a good price!" Gatou bellowed as his thugs bore down on them.

"Damn midget...Kakashi, looks like we're not enemies anymore." Zabuza commented as he prepared to dig in, Kakashi included.

"Sensei! What about Zabuza?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto...He is no longer a threat to our client since his broke their agreement. Right now, I need you to focus on protecting your teammates and the client. Take out any hostile that comes your way." Kakashi ordered as the thugs began to bear down upon them, coming in waves.

Naruto began to intercept hostiles that made it past them and began to cut them down like wheat, remembering how he saw Hiryu wield the sword. Focusing chakra into his legs, he boosted his speed to weave in and out of the thong of foes, picking them off, trying to mimic how his predecessor moved and fought. A scream got his attention, though. A few broke through behind him and were getting ready to kill Sakura and Tazuna. With a speed even he didn't know he had, he intercepted the blows and hacked them apart. He looked down at her, a fierce look still on his face.

"You okay?!" He called out above the din of combat.

"Y-yeah...Thank you, Naruto." She replied as he continued to pick off any thug that got too close.

Soon, their numbers were waning until only Gatou was left with a few thugs.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! THEY'RE ONLY TWO MEN AND ONE BRAT!" He screamed at his men, who cowered.

"B-but that's Sharingan Kakashi and Bloody Zabuza out there and that kid's not human! We're getting slaughtered!" The thug cried.

"Grr...Retreat! Take everything you can from the village and kill anyone you see!" Gatou ordered as he and the last of his men boarded small boats and headed back to the village to do just that while more men flooded the bridge to stall them.

"Damn! He's trying to stall us!" Kakashi yelled, but Naruto had a solution.

"I'll leave some clones here to guard the old fart while I go after him!" Naruto suggested.

"Good idea, Naruto! Get after them and don't let them escape! GO!" His sensei bellowed as Zabuza commented.

"That blond kid...Hard to believe he's a Genin..." The brow-less nin said.

"He's full of surprizes...Even to me and I've known him his whole life." Kakashi replied as they continued to eradicate the forces on the bridge.

Naruto lept out onto the water and began to run them down, archers trying to pick him off but the bowmen's aim was affected by the rolling water and their own shoddy skills, the young Genin being able to dodge them easily. His first swipe took out the first skiff while he left a paper bomb on it, the bomb destroying the rest of the threats while he went after Gatou himself. A brief fight on the small skiff's deck saw the rest of Gatou's protection dead, the small, pig-like man cowering at his feet.

"P-please...Spare me! I can give you anything you want! ANYTHING!" Gatou pleaded, disgust building at the sight of this man.

_'What would he do? Let him live to see justice, or deal it out himself?'_ Naruto debated within himself.

Gatou took advantage of his distraction and slipped a small _gun_ out of his sleeve and pointed it at the young ninja.

"DIE!" The coward screamed as he fired.

Naruto was caught flat-footed, but reacted in time to avoid a shot to his heart and only took it to his shoulder, lashing out with a knife that had been dropped on the deck and sliced his throat open, granting the evil little tyrant a slow and painful death.

"Dammit..." Naruto groaned, his wound burning more than anything as he began to pull the boat back to the bridge, with wasn't very since Naruto intercepted them fairly quickly. After a few more moments, he finally managed to drag the skiff to a small pier below the bridge and climb back up to report to his sensei, who had just finished off the last of the thugs alongside a mortally wounded Zabuza.

"Good job, Naruto. Good..." Kakashi panted while they saw to Zabuza, who had collapsed from blood loss and didn't have much longer.

"Hey...Drag me...over to where Haku is..." He requested, the two shinobi nodded and did as he asked.

"Haku...I know I promised to...turn Kiri into a place where...people like you can be free...Looks like I failed..." Zabuza lamented, his voice full of regret and tears in his eyes.

"You...Gaki...You have a nindo yet?" Zabuza asked Naruto.

"Y-yeah..." The young blond replied, telling him his nindo.

"...Very naive...But, it's pretty noble...If there were more like you...in this world...what happened in Kiri wouldn't have...happened." Zabuza gasped, his time running out.

"I want you to take my sword...I have no brats to pass this on to, Haku is already gone, but I want you to promise me...That you will help liberate Kiri one day." Zabuza implored him. It was a very solemn moment, a shinobi's dying wish. From what Kakashi told him, Zabuza was a member of the famous Seven Swordsmen and his blade was famous the world over. This was indeed a huge honor. He looked over to Kakashi, who nodded.

"I promise." Naruto swore, the stricken Jounin relaxing.

"I hope...Haku went to a better place than me." Zabuza sighed as he closed his eyes for the last time, dying in peace.

"Sensei...What happened in Kiri?" Naruto asked.

"...There are very good reasons why Kiri is called the Bloody Mist." Kakashi explained grimly, telling Naruto the sordid and nasty history of Kiri, along with the Bloodline Purges that Zabuza revealed he was trying to stop.

"So...He became a missing-nin to fight for what he believed was right..." Naruto summarized as they sealed the blade up for transport. In that sense, Zabuza was a hero.

"Heroes aren't heroes to everyone. That's one truth that you needed to learn if you want to continue. Be aware that doing the right thing can also make enemies of those who were allies." Kakashi warned him, letting it sink in while they walked back to where their client and remaining team currently were.

"Sakura. How are Sasuke and our client?" Kakashi asked.

"Tazuna-san isn't hurt, I'm okay and Sasuke-kun is unconscious, but Naruto said he was okay." She answered.

Naruto and Kakashi were both surprized that she didn't start with the insults already.

_'Looks like cold hard reality was enough of a wake up call for her. Hopefully she improves from here on out and Sasuke follows.'_ Kakashi hoped. He was hoping that this mission would be enough of a shock that it would pull them together. Sakura was beginning to see the light.

"Yeah...He should be fine, but we need to get him back to a bed to rest." Kakashi suggested, turning to Naruto.

"Can you make some clones and...Bury them? They deserve better than to rot out here." Kakashi told him as the blond Genin did just that, the original following them back to Tazuna's place.

_**TAZUNA'S HOUSE**_

As they headed back, the weight of the lives he had taken were slowly bearing down upon him and by the time they got back, Naruto had to stop suddenly.

"What's wrong, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, concerned. The young blond looked about to be ill.

"I...I just don't feel very good." Naruto stammered as he ducked over to a bush and let loose with that morning's breakfast.

"What happened, sensei? Is he alright?" Sakura asked, also showing some concern. Since Naruto saved them on the bridge, she had done a little thinking concerning her treatment of the blond.

_'He deserves better that that from me...He saved my life and Sasuke-kun's too. On top of that...He's changed so much. It's like he's a different person.'_

"Sakura, when anyone makes their first kill, it's always hard. Taking another's life is no laughing or small matter, no matter who you are. The fact that he is feeling remorse or guilt over this says a lot about him, that he genuinely regrets what he's done, but he will have to get over it if he wants to continue being a shinobi. Shinobi _will_ have to kill to survive, it's the way of the world we're in. Sakura, once you make yours, my door is open just like it is for all of you." Kakashi informed her as he went to check on Naruto.

"You feeling alright?" Kakashi asked him.

"I...I killed them...I could have at least taken Gatou alive so he could pay for what he's done." Naruto shuddered, tears leaking out.

"Listen to me and listen good. Killing is something that _will_ happen. You will face many enemies out there, ninja or otherwise, that _will not stop_ until you have killed them. The fact that you feel anything at all is a good sign. The moment you become numb to killing, you're nothing more than the monster those ignorant villagers claim you to be. Prove them wrong and don't worry. I'll be your sensei until you no longer need me, and maybe beyond that. Understand me?" Kakashi told him firmly, but there was true compassion and understanding in his voice, having been in his shoes once before.

"Y-yeah...Thanks, sensei." Naruto gasped out, catching his breath. He slowly stood back up and walked inside, where Sakura handed him a glass of water to drink.

"Here...This should help you feel a little better." She told him as he downed it slowly.

"Thanks..." He said, but he hesitated for a second.

"Hey...Sakura...Why are you being nice to me all the sudden? Not that I mind, it's just a little strange." Naruto asked.

"Well...The past few days, I've been thinking. Kakashi yelled at us for the way we were acting toward you and it made me wonder why we hated you so much. I remembered that my mom really hated you for some reason but wouldn't tell me and I guess I just started to too. But...You saved my life out there. Then, you felt bad about those kills you made and Kakashi-sensei explained things to me. That settled things for me. You can't bad as bad as my mom says if you saved our lives like that." She rationalize, making sense as she bowed to him.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry I was always so mean to you. I swear I'll treat you better from now on." She apologized to him formally.

"I just need to know one thing. This apology will last beyond Sasuke waking up and you fangirling over him, will it?" He replied with a question of his own. Sakura knew she couldn't get mad at him for that. Many times she was mean to him she was trying to gain favor from Sasuke.

"I...I'll give it an honest effort. If I slip, remind me, okay?" She told him.

"That's fair enough. I accept your apology." He replied to her.

"Think we could start over?" She asked.

"Sure..." He answered her as they began to talk while they rested, Kakashi over hearing the whole thing with a smile.

_'My team is starting to pull together...Now, all Sasuke needs is a push in the right direction and lose that arrogance and sense of entitlement...'_ Kakashi thought, although he wasn't the only one watching them.

_**"Young Naruto...You have overcome your first trial, but I am afraid that this is only the first of many yet to come. You dispensed justice in a fitting manner with my Cypher, as well as protect your comrades. While we fought for justice, Striders were certainly not saints. We did kill out targets, after all. However, for now...Good work."**_ The ghostly presence commented before it faded away completely.

_A/N: I know Sakura turned around fairly quickly, but the horrors and shock of combat can change someone...Trust me. I've been there and you try to refute that unchangeable fact, go to war like myself, my brothers and sisters in arms did and tell me differently. I was Navy, yes, but I volunteered to go out there. It just pisses me off when kids think that Call of Duty is the real thing and they try to play if off. Caught some punks doing just that just to get a Veteran's Discount for something. I asked them where they were posted and when, then saw the I.D's. Those little bastards lied about it in front of a REAL veteran, who EARNED that distinction in blood._

_ There...That's out of my system, now. Anyway...One of the things I included in here was from the movie Dragon Heart and it's something I believe in. _

_This new idea just hit me like lightning and I HAD to get it down. Tell me what you think._


	2. Chapter 2

_Here's another chapter before I shove off for Arizona on another contract job! This time, I won't have a laptop to work on, so any more updates will very slow to non-existant until I get myself another one. Maybe a small Netbook..._

_Anyway, Here we have what happens upon their return home!_

_**OUTSKIRTS OF TAZUNA'S VILLAGE ONE WEEK LATER...**_

A week had passed since the battle at the bridge that finally saw Wave's tormentor and self-proclaimed tyrant dead and his mercenary force destroyed. At first, the villagers didn't believe that Gatou was dead and that he was playing another cruel trick on them by toying with them. It wasn't until Kakashi showed them the disgusting little pig's corpse and the girls and women that had been set free that they actually relaxed. Work on the bridge picked up again and was soon completed, now connecting them with the mainland and ready to breath new life into the impoverished nation. A new leader had to be chosen and the people chose Tazuna, due to his actions in getting the ninja to actually come and for building the bridge.

As for the ninja, Sasuke's injuries required a couple of days to heal but he was on his feet again inside of three days. However, once he was recovered, he was on Naruto's case incessantly about how he managed to defeat Haku, the enemy nin that ripped him to shreds, when he couldn't do the job even with his Sharingan.

_ "I just got lucky and caught him from behind, that's all." Naruto tried to downplay, but he wasn't having it._

_ "I bet it was that weapon...Give it to me. I can put it to much better use than you." Sasuke demanded._

_ "You just don't learn, teme...The last time you tried to touch it, it shocked you. This thing only sees me as it's owner, so no dice." Naruto sighed as he explained for what seemed to be the hundreth time._

_ Off to the side, Sakura stood by and watched as it all unfolded. Now that she stepped back and saw the situation for what it was, she saw that Sasuke was trying to take something that would never belong to him. The old Sakura from a week ago would have been yelling and screaming to let Sasuke have his way, but the thinking she'd been doing lately forced her to re-evaluate how the rest of the world truly percieved her...and it wasn't pretty. Naruto and Kakashi saw her as a rabid fangirl that fawned over the Uchiha to the exclusion of all else, seen pretty much as a stark raving bitch by many, even by her former best friend. As she watched, she then remembered the promise she made to Naruto, to start treating him better and listening to his side of the story for once. Now that she was doing just that, she could now tell that her crush was causing many of the team's crippling problems with his generally shitty attitude._

_ "Sasuke-kun...That really does belong to him." Sakura tried to intervene and hopefully talk him down._

_ "Shut up, you useless fangirl!" He bellowed at her as he shoved her away._

_ "Hey! She didn't do anything, teme! What're you yelling at her for?" Naruto shot back as the arguing got Kakashi's attention._

_ "What is going on here?" He demanded to know, looking to Sakura for an explanation, this being a test to see if she would keep her promise or not._

_ "W-well...Sasuke-kun is kind of angry at Naruto for saving him and now he wants that thing on Naruto's back...But didn't Naruto find it somewhere? Doesn't that make it Naruto's?" She answered and asked, gaining a nod from Kakashi._

_ "That's correct, Sakura. Naruto found it fair and square, so it belongs to him and Sasuke has no right to demand things form anyone. Further more, Naruto saved your life Sasuke and made sure you lived to fight another day, so I would be a little more grateful." Kakashi admonished, the last Uchiha's scowl deepening as he stomped away._

_ "That boy..." He sighed heavily as he turned to the other two._

_ "Sakura...I just wanted to say that I'm proud of you for telling the truth." He told her._

_ "Well, I DID promise Naruto that I'd treat him better from now on." She replied._

_ "And you made good on it. He needs friends, Sakura. All the friends he can get." Kakashi told her cryptically as they sat for dinner._

The time had come for them to leave Wave, the ninja, Naruto especially, being viewed as heroes for their deeds. He was considered special to them for ending Gatou's life personally. On the way home, Sakura thought about those cryptic words Kakashi had spoken to her, about Naruto desperately needing friends, good friends he could count on. It then made her think about how he was treated in the village, about how many of the adults looked at him in disgust, others with rage. She wondered why they all acted like that when Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Sandaime-sama, and the other rookie sensei tried to help him. Even Ino's parents and her own father looked downtrodden when they spoke ill of the diminutive blond.

_'Do they know something about him that no one else does? But why won't they say anything?'_ She wondered, having many questions for her father and Iruka-sensei if she could find him.

Naruto was doing his own soul searching, pondering the speech Kakashi had given him about having to kill. He was somewhat disgusted with himself for taking those lives so easily, but he was even more disgusted with the people he had slain. He came to the conclusion that if he hadn't killed them and let them slither away, more people would suffer.

_'Fine then...I'll only kill when I have no other choice...A last resort.'_ Naruto swore as they continued on.

Sasuke was busy with his own dark and gloomy thoughts, but this mission had shattered his self-image as an unbeatable ninja. There were several ninja out there that could kill him without any difficulty. Haku had him beaten, even with his Sharingan yet Naruto managed to take him by surprize and killed Haku with a single attack. That brought up another sore subject...Naruto's new weapon that he _found_ in the forest.

_'A weapon like that should belong to someone like me. I could use it to avenge my clan and kill Itachi, while that dobe would only squander it and probably kill himself with it...I must have it somehow.'_ He glowered mentally as he trudged on.

Kakashi had to think back on this recent mission and scrutinized portions of it. He admitted to himself that bringing them on this mission was a bad idea, but at least two of his genin were pulling together. Naruto had shown improvements in leaps and bounds in his skills as well as his maturity. Elements of the old Naruto that were quite endearing were still there, but this new path he chose for himself was driving him to better himself. His assistance on the bridge was invaluable and his actions made sure that Wave would never fall under Gatou's oppression again. Sakura was once the most notorious fangirl he's ever seen, but this mission seemed to have knocked it out of her. She had taken a step back and re-evaluated how she handled things and was struck by the realization that she wasn't a very good person at all. All she did was fawn over Sasuke to the exclusion of everything else, even her training and the stone cold truth.

_'Now, all I need to do is break Sasuke...But how? And without the council coming after my head? What that brat needed was tough love, not coddling.'_ The Jounin surmised.

_**KONOHA**_

It had been almost a full month since they left on their mission and now they were finally home, passing through the gates of Konoha as Kakashi checked them in with the gate clerks. After that formality was finished, they ventured through the village proper until they reached Hokage Tower. He then turned and faced his team.

"I can take it from here, kids, but Naruto...I'll be needing you to come with me since you made the kill on Gatou." Kakashi explained, but he had other reasons for having the young blond come with him.

"Tch...Fine. I'm outta here." Sasuke scoffed as he stalked away.

Sakura was tempted to run after him, but she had too many things that were bothering her from this mission and she needed them answered as soon as possible.

"When to we meet next, sensei?" She asked.

"At least you bothered to ask...We'll meet again in three days. You all earned the down time, but use it wisely." Kakashi told her as he and Naruto walked into the building.

"Now...I hope my dad's home and not my mom..." She muttered to herself as she made her way home.

_**HOKAGE TOWER**_

The Jounin and Genin walked up the stairs that lead to Sarutobi's office, bumping into a few familiar faces along the way, such as Kurenai and Asuma's teams.

"So...I hear you guys went on a C-Rank. How did that go?" Asuma inquired.

"Hm...I'll admit that this has my curiosity as well. I've been thinking about getting my team one." Kurenai added.

"Well..." Kakashi started off the tale with a few minor details left out that were no one else's business save for themselves and the Hokage, but they were highly impressed that Team 7 did so well on an upgraded mission. Their surprize was blown out of the water when they were told how Naruto fared on the mission.

"Well, well! Looks like test scores aren't the best way to measure ability in our line of work, like I've told those old farts on the council for years. Thanks for proving my point, kiddo." Asuma grinned.

"That was...very shocking, to say the least. However, Naruto is now a bloodied ninja, like the rest of us. That is a large milestone in any nin's career." Kurenai supplied.

"Wait a minute...The dobe made his first kills before Sasuke-kun? Are you sure about that?" Ino questioned, but the Copy Ninja would have none of that.

"Yes...He did, Yamanaka-san. He saved Sasuke's life, in case you didn't hear that part either. On top of that, he made the final kill that saw Gatou himself dead, taking out his bodyguards over the water to do so." Kakashi elaborated without embellishing anything. It was the simple truth.

"This just keeps on getting better and better..." Asuma chuckled again.

"No way...That's impossible..." Ino whispered, actually being rent silent for a change.

"That's a nice change of pace. She actually shut up for once, and good on you, Naruto." Shikamaru sighed with a lazy grin.

"Y-yes...Nice work, N-naruto-k-kun..." Hinata stammered out, just barely avoiding passing out in front of the boy she liked.

"Gah...I guess you did alright...for a dobe." Kiba relented, still throwing in a final jibe for which Kurenai fixed him with a glare.

"Well...We should be on our way to see Samdaime-sama. Ja ne." He lazily bid them farewell as they walked up to the doors.

"Kakashi-sama, Uzumaki-san...Here to see Hokage-sama?" The secretary asked.

"Yep." He replied as she buzzed them in.

"Ahh...Nice to see that you are back and in one piece. Tell me, how did your team fare?" The old Hokage inquired, the tale being told in its entirety this time, but Sarutobi saved his questions until after they were done.

"Now...I'd like to ask about this...Cypher Blade that you acquired, Naruto-kun, as well as this new outlook on life." Sarutobi stated, his tone no longer that of a kindly old man, but that of a leader of a shinobi village.

"Jiji...When I found this sword, a message played when I came close. The guy begged whoever took this thing to fight for the same things he did, for justice, peace, what was right. When I saw what was happening in Wave, I...It just clicked. This power the Yondaime entrusted to me...I want to use it to bring some good to the world because I know I can do it." Naruto replied, his tone firm and unwavering.

"Naruto...You realise that this may eventually bring you into conflict with this village, whomever may be running it at the time may see you as an obstacle...One that will need to be eliminated. What will you do?" Sarutobi posed. Kakashi was ready to jump in and help Naruto out, but Sarutobi stalled him with only a gaze.

_'I see...He wants Naruto to answer for himself. This is merely another test of his will.'_ Kakashi theorized, hoping Naruto could find an answer.

"I honestly don't know, but I know one thing. I know the Yondaime would do the right thing for everyone, not just the village." Naruto shot back.

"And how would you know that?" Sarutobi asked.

"...A dream...They came to me. He said I was his son and my mom, Kushina, told me that doing the right thing with our powers as Jinchuuriki will always trump the needs of one village. She said that Jinchuuriki belong to the world, not one person." Naruto answered him, his words shaking Sarutobi to the core.

_'Dear Kami...He knows.'_ Sarutobi thought.

"My old man told me that you have something he wanted me to have. It's in a special drawer where your pervy books are kept, that it has a house key and one of his special kunai inside it." Naruto stated, these things he couldn't possibly have known. No one knew, only himself and those two, who died the night he was born.

"I...I see. I can't lie to you anymore, since you now know the truth. Minato wanted me to tell you when I thought you were ready, and...You are ready. I've only seen a look of such intensity on one man, and that was your father. Your mother, Kushina, truly felt the way you do, as did the woman who came before her, Mito-sama. they felt that they belonged to no one village or country, but they had a responsiblity to the entire world to use their powers responsibly and properly. You truly have made this old man very proud of you." Sarutobi's stern visage melted away to reveal that he actually had a tear or two in his eyes.

"Kakashi...What do you have to say on this?" He asked.

"Honestly, I want to help him. We've already seen too much war in such a short time. Three major Shinobi Wars in only a 70 year span is a bad record to set." Kakashi stated sadly, having lost his teammates to war.

"I understand. Naruto has chosen his path and understands the risks involved in such a massive undertaking. I see no reason to stifle or hinder him, although I am sad that he won't be taking this hat from me. He would hav made a fine Hokage, like his father before him." Sarutobi said as they concluded the briefing, but one final issue needed to be hammered out.

"Just before he died, Zabuza Momochi passed his Kubikiri down to Naruto, but I'm not sure how Kiri would take that. What should we do?" Kakashi asked.

"Hmm..." Sarutobi muttered. This was indeed a huge honor that had been bestowed upon the young Genin, but since Momochi was a Nuke-nin, he was unsure how Kiri would take one of their Genin taking ownership of one of their seven sacred swords.

"Keep it hidden for the time being and we will cross that bridge when we get to it. In the meantime, I would like for Naruto-kun to undergo swordsmanship training. Kakashi, it would be best if we kept this knowledge under wraps so I would like you to begin teaching him the basics of swordsmanship. Once he gets to a certain level, I will bring in Hayate or Yuugao to teach him further." Sarutobi advised, concluding the debriefing. However, looking at it, it was certainly very unique.

"Now that I look at it, this is a very unique design. Hmm...I know someone who can teach you how to use Tonfa, one Tenshu Shimoto. He was once a weapons specialist and now owns a weapons shop near the tower here. Take this note to him and tell him that anything you require can be put on my personal bill. Also, it would be a good idea to made some wooden replicas of this weapon for training purposes, as not to damage the original." Sarutobi advised as the pair turned to leave the room.

"Yeah...That sounds like a good plan, jiji. Hey Kakashi-sensei, wanna hit that place up after we're done here?" Naruto asked.

"I've got nothing better to do today, so we might as well get this done now while we're thinking about it. We can grab some dinner afterwards." Kakashi answered.

Student and sensei both bowed to their leader before heading out the door as Sarutobi gazed upon the portrait of the Yondaime and the Hokage that came before him.

_'This boy...He truly is special in a way that we cannot possibly comprehend. All I can do for him is to help illuminate his way through this uncertain world.'_ Sarutobi thought as he puffed his pipe some more while he got back to his paper work.

_**HARUNO RESIDENCE**_

It was a modest civilian home that Sakura grew up in, the daughter to an accountant/salesman and a housewife. Daichi Haruno had once tried his hand at being a ninja, but never went any further than Chuunin. He resigned from the Shinobi Corps but stayed on the active reserves and tried his hand at retailing, where he found his niche in the world. Soon, he had a successful store, then a wife and a daughter. The night of the Kyuubi attack happened when his daughter was only 6 months old, but due to a extreme amount of luck, their residence was untouched since the Yondaime managed to lure it away from the village and then sealed it. He knew about the sealing since he was one of five shinobi there that night after being called back into temporary active service, just at the right place at the right time to hear the truth. He even heard the part about parentage and understood the fact about Naruto being a living prison for the demonic fox, that it could not influence him, but the boy would later be able to draw power from it.

His wife, Shizuka Haruno, was a different story. She came from a purely civilian background, save for an uncle who served in the Second and Third Shinobi Wars and managed to live through both. Even the Kyuubi attack couldn't kill off the hardy old man, but he was the black sheep of the family. Tenchi Shimoto had a son, Tenshu, who followed in his footsteps by fighting in the Third Shinobi War and so on, but we're straying off subject here. She knew little to nothing of ninja affairs and was physically ill at the thought of her eldest daughter becoming a kunoichi. She was even more distraught when her youngest at age 6, Natsumi, wanted to join up as well because of a blond boy she saw. She knew there was only one blond boy in the whole village and it was the Demon Container. She hated the boy with every fiber of her being. She hadn't lost anything the night of the attack. Her friends and family lived through it, but she was one to easily be swept away by the crowd. She hated him just by word of mouth, something her husband chided her for, but she never listened. When she learned that Naruto was to be her daughter's third teammate, she was a hair away from complaining to the Hokage, but her husband talked her out of it. She just settled for letting her eldest hate him in place of that.

"I'm home!" Sakura called out from the genkan, taking off her sandals as just the person she wanted to see greeted her, along with the other person she wanted to see.

"How was the mission, honey?" Daichi asked.

"Didja bring me back something, One-chan?!" Natsumi, her younger sister with very long, wavy pink hair, begged as her elder sister dropped her pack and dug into it.

"Here...Some tea from Nami for dad...and some doll clothes for Natsumi, hand made." Sakura muttered as she divvied out the gifts, the recipients loving them as Sakura told them about her mission, warts and all.

"Wow...So your sensei really lived up to his reputation. I'm also glad you decided to start fresh with Naruto. That was very mature of the both of you." Daichi remarked.

"Kakashi-sensei's that famous?" She asked.

"Oh yes. He was a student of an old friend of mine, and a Jounin when he was your age. He made a name for himself during the Third Shinobi War and now he's pretty famous, an A-Rank nin, almost S-Rank. In my prime, I was a C-Rank at best." Daichi recollected, his daughters in awe.

"Now...Did something happen during the mission, dear? You know you can tell me anything." Daichi assured her, helping her brace herself for the questions she was about to ask.

"Yeah...A few things happened..." She started out, explaining all of the thinking she had been doing in the past couple of weeks, coupled with what had been revealed about her mysterious blond teammate. Her surprize peaked when her father's face grew grim, a pained haze in his eyes.

"Natsumi, honey...Can you go upstairs for a moment? Please?" He asked his youngest.

"Aww...But I wanted to hear about Naruto-sempai..." She pouted on her way up the stairs.

_'That girl...She really does admire him...'_ He thought fondly as he kept an ear out.

Once he heard her plop on her bed, he knew it was safe to talk.

"Now...This must never, _never_, leave this room, or the Hokage will kill us both without mercy. We were sworn to secrecy on the night he was born, the night of the Kyuubi attack. The reason why people hate him so much is because they believe that he is the Kyuubi reborn...But they aren't entirely correct. You see...The Yondaime gave his very soul to seal the demon into the boy on the night of his birth, his dying wish was that he be viewed as a hero for his role in saving us all...But someone misunderstood his methods and spread it to the villagers, hatred spreading like a plague. Many demanded his death that night and it is nothing short of a miracle that he survived, not having parents to protect him. The identity of his parents have been hidden and very few people know that information, your sensei being one of them I suspect. That is the only reason why I could see Kakashi being so adamant about having him on his team, although Naruto himself might not even know." Daichi explained, his voice low.

Sakura couldn't believe what had been revealed to her. Just when one mystery about him had been resolved, more sprang up in it's place. However, through the shock, her still analytical mind dissected the information that had been provided, working furiously to fill in the gaps. The thought of carrying around something that dangerous inside of her scared her to her core, but for the life of her she could not figure out how Naruto managed to stay sane all this time and not snap. Her respect for him took another huge leap forward just for the will power it must have taken to force that grin on his face. Next, she remembered a picture of the Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze. He had...

_'Spiky blond hair...Blue eyes...Naruto has the same...That can't be a coincidence...Only the eye shape is different, but that might have been inheirited from his mother, whomever she was, but the face is basically the same. Kami...How stupid are we NOT to have noticed that?! Add to that Kakashi-sensei being the Yondaime's only surviving student and demanding Naruto be placed on his team...Naruto is the son of the freaking YONDAIME!'_ She realized, the epiphany clear as day in her eyes to her father.

"I see that you figured it out...Now. I ask that you shut this information away and do not reveal that to anyone. His father had many enemies, both within this village and outside of it. His main rivals were the Uchiha, who's late clan head he defeated for the right to become the Hokage. That would be Sasuke's late father, Fugaku. I knew him as well...Not that it was terribly pleasant. He regarded all of us that didn't have clan blood to be inferior, including Minato, since he was an orphan himself. He deeply resented Minato for taking what he believed was his...The Hokage position and the hand of Kushina Uzumaki in marriage. To be fair, Minato and Kushina were made for each other and everyone could see that they were extremely happy together, but he wasn't. However, no matter what he did or tried, she wouldn't leave Minato's side. He wound up marrying a nice woman named Mikoto, sireing two sons, Itachi and Sasuke." Daichi wound down the tale, standing up with a groan.

"That's about the limit of what I know. Like I said, lock this knowledge away and shut it in tightly. Just continue to be his friend as you have already started to be and he will eventually open up to you. I'm sure he's already asked you this, but I will ask again. When put between a crush and a true friend, which will you choose? One comes and goes, but the other can last a lifetime. It's something you made before with your friend Ino, if you recall." Her father reminded her.

She remembered that day. She came home crying her eyes out that she lost her best friend, but hoped that she would catch Sasuke in the end and make it worth the sacrifice she had to make, thus her nearly single-minded pursuit of the gloomy Uchiha. It took nearly getting killed on her first mission beyond Konoha's safety, and this talk with her dad to realise that.

"I know I made a huge mistake...Trading my friendship with Ino over something that...I don't think will last much longer at this point. All he cares about is power and he doesn't care how he gets it. He even tried attacking Naruto, after Naruto saved his life, just because someone had proved to be better than him at something. I don't want to spend my life with someone like that." Sakura admitted to her dear old dad.

"You definitely inherited my brains, my little blossom." He chuckled, using name for her that he'd used since she was a baby.

It was just one of those things he always did with his daughters to make sure they knew he still loved them and reminding her just how lucky she really was.

"But dad...Won't mom get mad at me for being friends with him?" She asked.

"Don't worry about her. I'll take care of that. You just do what your heart tells you is right." He advised her just as her mother came in the door.

"Oh! Sakura, honey! You're back! I don't know _why_ I let you take up this profession, especially since you had to leave and stay alongside that ghastly Uzumaki boy." She ranted as Sakura tuned her out, just taking her things up to her room and putting them away so she could clean up, eat dinner and get some sleep. An knock at her door alerted her to someone's presence, that of her kid sister Natsumi.

"Tsumi-chan...What's up?" She asked.

"One-chan...What really happened out there? Is there something wrong with Naruto-sempai?" The small girl inquired.

"Tsumi-chan...That's something I can't tell you without getting into a lot of trouble, but he's fine. Better than before, actually. And before you ask...I don't hate him anymore. Don't really know why I even did in the first place." Sakura answered her questions.

"Cool! I was wondering if he would play with me, and Konohamaru-kun, and Moegi-chan, and Udon-kun...And play ninja with us! He sometimes teaches us things that Iruka-sensei teaches in class about how to hide and set traps!" The little girl gushed, Sakura finding it hilarious and cute at the same time.

_'If he only knew that he had a 7 year old fan girl...He'd die laughing, if not embarrassment first.'_ Sakura chuckled inwardly as she had her sister slam on the brakes.

"Hey...We need to get washed up for dinner, okay?" Sakura suggested.

"...Okay!" The girl chirped as she took off like a shot, Sakura now left to her thoughts.

_'Okay...Now that I'm thinking clearly, my room is actually kind of creepy. All of these Sasuke pictures and posters need to go.'_ She realised, tearing down the likenesses of her soon to be ex-crush.

"That's better...Huh. Since I came back, I'm treating my family better, too. Tsumi-chan's getting to be a real cutie, she'll be chasing boys away in a few years, but I never noticed because of Sasuke. My dad is full of useful advice, but my obsession with Sasuke made me blind to it. I think it's for the best...Letting go of that crush." She realised as he went down for dinner.

_**SHIMOTO WEAPON SURPLUS DEPOT...**_

_**IF IT GOES SLASH, STAB, CRUNCH, OR BOOM...WE'VE GOT IT! **_

_**STORE CREDIT ON CASE BY CASE BASIS.**_

Kakashi and Naruto found Tenshu Shimoto's store just fine, but once they entered it was like a weapon freak's wonderland. There were weapons Naruto nor even Kakashi had ever seen before on display. Some were utilitarian in design, while some others just plain looked evil and nasty in a way that would make the T and I spooks shudder with glee, including a metallic shaft with a gigantic spiked ball on the end.

"Whew...That'll come down like the fist of an angry god..." Kakashi muttered, but a voice answered him.

"Yeah, but it's hard as all hell to use!" A deep, masculine voice replied. They spun around to see a large muscular man with soft brown hair and eyes, sporting scars of all shapes and sizes.

"Kakashi! It's good to see you, kiddo! You in the market for a new pig sticker, or do you finally want to use a man's weapon?" The large man teased as he noticed the small blond next to him.

"Oh ho! So you've got a student? Finally broke the tight wad down, huh sport?" He asked Naruto.

"Are you...Tenshu Shimoto?" Naruto asked.

"Damn right I am, squirt! Welcome to the Shimoto Weapon Surplus Depot! If you wanna do some real damage, we've got what you want!" Tenshu greeted them jovially as he wound down.

"So...What brings you boys down here?" He asked them.

"I'm trying to get my student some Tonfa, since he displayed an interest in them. Also, I don't know how to use them so I was hoping you knew someone that did and could teach him." Kakashi mentioned, but beckoned him to come closer.

_"Don't worry...He already knows."_

"So...You must be Kushina's boy...Probably every bit the hellion his mother was in her youth. Don't know how Minato managed to get a wild beauty like her, as meek as he was around girls. You don't seem like him though...In looks, yes, but that attitude is all hers. Well, don't worry about a thing, brat! We'll fix you up nice!" He grinned widely as he called out to the back.

"Oi! Tenten! We got customers!" He bellowed, a young girl only a year older than him coming out and had on a headband like him.

"What's up, dad? I was working the forge with Gramps." She stated, slightly annoyed as she looked at said customers. One was a Jounin she recognised as the famous Sharingan Kakashi, and the boy...

"I've seen you before...In the Academy, right?" She probed.

"Probably. I mean...I'm only of the only blonds running around in the village." He answered with a shrug.

"You're not a Yamanaka?" She asked with uncertainty.

"Nope. If I was related to that shrew Ino, I'd have jumped off Hokage Mountain by now." Naruto replied with a smirk, making her chuckle at his sense of humor.

"You're alright...So, my old man says you want to learn how to use the Tonfa? It's one of my favorite weapons. Since I kinda like you already, I can help you out!" She grinned as widely as her father, bumping fists with her new blond friend as the adults watched on.

"That kid...Given a fair chance, he can make friends with almost anyone." Kakashi commented with a grin.

"Does my old heart good to see Mito-chan's relative makin' friends with my granddaughter. I think they'll get on fine since those Uzumaki were always a friendly lot." An old wizened voice called out, revealing the old but still well muscled frame of Tenchi Shimoto.

"How're ya doin, Kakashi-bozu? You finally got brats of yer own to train? One of 'em bein' your old teacher's kid?" He asked.

"Yeah...He's a healthy mix of both his parents. Kid's damn crafty and stubborn as a goat like his mom, but he's got sensei's charisma." Kakashi replied.

"How much you boys goin' to be hauling away?" Tenshu asked.

"A few pairs of training tonfa, some training swords since I'll be teaching him swordsmanship myself, standard training weights, seals, the works." Kakashi rattled off.

"That's a lot of stuff, bozu...How you gonna pay?" Tenchi inquired, Kakashi pulling out the note Sarutobi told him to give them.

"Heh...Old Hiruzen's picking up the tab, eh? He's good for it." The old man smirked, turning to his granddaughter.

"Oi! Round up everything on this list and charge it to the Sarutobi account!" He instructed.

"Gotcha', jiji! C'mon, Naruto. Wanna help?" She asked him, the boy nodding as they left to gather everything.

"What's with the wierd sword on his back, Kakashi?" Tenshu asked, his voice serious.

Tenchi Shimoto and his kin were the most trustworthy people in the village, so telling them posed no risk. Kakashi explained what went down in Wave and that Sarutobi knew and recommended them, hence why they were there. The two aged and vastly experienced retired shinobi both nodded in understanding, along with being a little impressed.

"So Zabuza actually _gave_ his sword to the kid? That's a huge honor. Those Kiri swordsmen would bury themselves with their swords if they had to. That kid's got quite a future ahead of him, but I think he can do it. Kami knows he's got his mother's spunk." Tenchi rumbled.

"Yeah...That kid's got a rough road ahead of him, one that might make him an enemy of the village one day, depending on who the Kage'll be once old Sarutobi steps down." Tenshu agreed.

"I told him that heroes aren't heroes to everyone. Minato is a hero here, but to Iwa, his name is like a bitter insult. He said he'd push through it." Kakashi answered them.

"Sounds like the kid's got it all under control. All he needs are the actual skills, now." Tenchi remarked as the two youngsters had everything sealed into scrolls and already rung up.

"Since Sarutobi brought us so much business, we'll comp the scrolls and the training." The old man winked as the teacher and student made their way to get some dinner before going their seperate ways.

"You excited about getting to play sensei, Ten-chan?" Tenshu asked his daughter.

"Yeah! He's a funny guy, kinda smart, too." She remarked, but he knew that tone anywhere.

What really threw him for a loop was that it came from his wildcat, tomboy daughter, who when she was little thought that boys were weaklings and would beat up on them like clockwork. Now, she's a teenager and blossoming into a beautiful young woman, who was now looking more and more like her deceased mother everyday.

_'Kisa...I think our little girl just started her first crush...And on Minato and Kushina's boy, too. Fate's funny that way, huh?'_ He thought with a chuckle as they flipped the sign to closed for the evening and closed up shop for the night.

_**ICHIRAKU RAMEN**_

Teacher and student both arrived at one of Naruto's most common haunts, Ichiraku Ramen, owned and run by one Teuchi Ichiraku and his daughter Ayame. The amiable old chef was a friendly man and his daughter a sweet young lady, but since they were friendly to the resident Jinchuuriki, their little Ramen stand didn't get very much business despite having such high quality ramen. They managed to get by with what they had, with a little help from the Hokage and the business he and his clan brought them. Teuchi saw the two of them land just outside the curtain and waved them inside.

"C'mon in, boys! Have a seat." Teuchi welcomed the pair, setting them down.

"You've been gone for a while, boy. What kept you?" The old chef asked.

"I was on a mission for a while!" Naruto told him excitedly, both himself and Kakashi telling the Ichiraku's what happened in Wave... At least what he was allowed to say.

"That's incredible, Naruto-chan!" Ayame gushed as she brought out their bowls, well...Kakashi's bowl and Naruto's cauldron.

They ate their fill there as they continued to talk about other subjects until it was finally time to go.

"Naruto...Your training will be split between myself teaching you Kenjutsu and building your Ninjutsu arsenal while the Shimoto's daughter teaches you to use Tonfa. As for your Taijutsu...I have to call in a favor and since your element is wind, I call ask a fellow sensei to help out, since wind is my worst element." Kakashi summarized.

"Sensei...Why are you doing all of this for me? Didn't those old bastards on the council want you to teach the teme?" Naruto asked, questioning his recent boon.

"Naruto...Since you know who your parents are, I think you should know who my sensei was." Kakashi told him solemnly, Teuchi and Ayame understanding what he was saying. The Ichiraku's are some of the only people who knew Naruto's true heritage.

"You father was my teacher. I once had a teammate that was almost exactly like you, a prankster, joker, dead last in his class. His name was Obito Uchiha, my best friend. He was very much unlike any other Uchiha that I'd ever met, but like I said, just like you. That saying I taught to you the day you became a team, that was his personal saying. This Sharingan eye I have...It was his, given to me upon his death. After he died and I learned that your mother was pregnant with you, I vowed that you would become my student, that I would teach you all I know, like your father did for me. You can say it's a legacy...You see, the Niidaime taught the Sandaime, the Sandaime taught Jiraiya of the Sannin, a dead last like you were. He then taught your father, who taught me and now...I'm teaching you." Kakashi admitted.

That was a lot for the boy to take in all at once, but he digested it slowly. He was the next in line of a grand legacy that stretched all the way back to the first two Hokages.

"Wow...That's pretty intense..." Naruto muttered as they continued to leave the establishment.

Teuchi and Ayame knew to keep silent about what they learned there, so there was nothing to say but farewell for the night as the two took off for the rooftops again. Kakashi and Naruto continued along until they made it to Naruto's small apartment.

"I hope you're ready for this." Kakashi warned.

"I'm always ready sensei! Bring it on!" Naruto stated confidently.

"Good. Good to hear, Naruto. I just hope you won't come to regret it." Kakashi warned again as he flashed away, leaving him to get some sleep and think to himself on the days events.

_**THE NEXT MORNING**_

Naruto had awoken the next morning, eager to begin his training under his new friend Tenten. He flew out of bed, ate a quick bowl of cereal, dressed and was out his door in a flash with his training gear to meet at her dad's weapon shop. He made it there in a few minutes, barely even a blur as he rushed over the rooftops to the store, seeing his new friend waiting outside with others.

"I'm not late, am I?" He asked.

"Nope. Right on time." She replied, turning his attention to the others standing there.

"This is my team. Starting from the right is Gai-sensei..."

"GREETINGS, NARUTO-KUN!" The green unitard clad...Person greeted.

"Next is Lee..." We'll just skip that as his response is a mirror image of Gai's. Frightening.

"And finally, there's Neji Hyuuga." Said Hyuuga only glanced at him in disinterest and scoffed, irritating the blond slightly.

"Cool. So...What will we be doing today?" Naruto asked, the question fielded by Gai.

"I am glad you asked! Kakashi-kun asked a favor of me in the form of tutoring you in Taijutsu and I have also been informed of the training agreement between you and Tenten, however I have been informed of your ability to use the Kage Bunshin and it's benefits. You can spar with myself and Lee-kun while you have clones learning forms from Tenten! Does this sound agreeable?" Gai asked, not once referring to youth, or any variable of it.

"Y-yeah...That sounds cool." Naruto stammered slightly as they got moving.

Along the way, Naruto got to know a little more about this odd team, like the fact that this team was almost a mirror image of his own with the way it was organised. Lee was the dead last of his year, Tenten and Neji being the top male and female students in the class. Gai was an old war buddy of Kakashi's, the two sometimes engaging in ridiculous contests, in which Gai was currently leading. Lee had some kind of birth defect that shrivled up his chakra coils, so Nin and Genjutsu were beyond him, leaving Taijutsu as his only recourse. However, that earned the badly dressed Genin some major points in his book, Lee refusing to give up or give in, no matter how many people told him it was worthless to even try. He saw many startling parallels between himself and Lee, his drive serving to further fuel his determination. A voice brought him out of his musings.

"So...I hear that you were the dead last of your class, just like this joke." Neji commented.

"Yeah...So what?" Naruto replied simply.

"Then you should not tempt fate. It had decreed that you will never be anything but a failure and any attempts to fix that are useless." Neji scoffed as he walked on ahead.

"...Jerkass." Naruto muttered.

"Don't mind him...He's always like that, but he's really strong so be careful." Tenten warned.

"Bah...Sasuke's just like him, so that jackass won't bother me too much." Naruto sighed as he dismissed the whole thing with a wave of his hand, his restraint earning him a few points with the rest of Team Gai.

The group made it to the training grounds where Neji was waiting, but before he could commented, Gai spoke.

"Alright! Naruto-kun is here as a guest at the request of a good friend of mine, Kakashi Hatake. Tenten has volunteered to teach him to wield Tonfa, an often overlooked yet versatile weapon, while I will instruct him in a Taijutsu style that would likely suit him." Gai stated.

Neji looked like he wanted to protest, but Gai, for all of his oddities and eccentricities, was no one to be trifled with when he was serious. He was hands down one of the greatest Taijutsu masters in the world, a S-Rank shinobi all on his own, and he earned every bit of that reputation. He was the fastest person he'd ever seen and Lee was quickly growing to the point that he would no longer be a match for him, regardless of his chakra deficiency. He wisely decided to stay silent.

"Cool! Teach me!" Naruto cheered as he put on his training weights and activated them.

"Oof! That's heavy..." Naruto commented as he walked off with Gai and Lee, but didn't notice that he was leaving indentations in the ground when he walked. Tenten just shook her head, knowing that her new friend was just as odd as everyone else she seemed to know, turning her attention to the Shadow clones Naruto left behind...All 50 of them.

"...Right. Okay then, let's get started on the basic forms, shall we?" She stated, getting their attention to begin their training session as Neji looked on.

"...Hmph. If you are not going to help me train, I am leaving." Neji declared as he walked off in a huff.

"Ugh...That guy is the biggest baby, I swear. I don't know what those fangirls saw in him." Tenten grunted as they continued to run through the basic forms and movements required to learn how to use Tonfa effectively.

Over with Gai, the real Naruto was being put through his paces, having been set to spar with Lee and getting the snot beaten out of him. After each spar, Gai would give Naruto a critique of things he'd like to see improved in the next fight and corrected Naruto's form, having him run it through a few times before doing it again. Now...Whoever said that Naruto was a slow learner needs to have full lobotomy, with rusty instruments, from a person with Parkinson's who got their Medical License out of a cereal box.

_'Naruto-kun's learning curve is simply astounding...What has the Academy been doing? He learns just as quickly as Lee. The title of Dead Last hangs like a stigma over them, it is not fair to them. They suffered due to the ignorance and sloth of the Academy instructor, being unjustly cast aside. Kakashi did the right thing bringing his deficiencies to my attention and not let pride get in the way.'_ Gai thought deeply as he watched Lee take it slowly with Naruto, since he was still getting used to the weights.

"You are doing well, Naruto-kun! I will run over the next kata with you now!" Lee cheered as he did just that, aiding his fellow Dead Last as Gai-sensei had done for him. It did Gai's heart good to see Lee and Naruto getting along so well, two fellow Dead Lasts aiding one another.

The day dragged on until the sun had set and Naruto discovered a draw back in using the Kage Bunshin training method. If too many clones disperse at once, the mental backlash would give him a splitting headache, as he unfortunately found out the hard way. After he recovered, Gai asked him if he wanted to go get some supper with them, so he agreed, giving them a suggestion.

"Hey um...You guys wanna go get some Ramen from this place I know?" Naruto suggested.

"Hmm...Ramen sounds great, Naruto-kun!" Gai boomed as he faced the whole team.

"Off we go...To the Ichiraku Ramen Bar to stoke our fires of Youth!" Gai bellowed with a mighty laugh, Lee getting swept away by the moment, invoking the _Evil Genjutsu_.

"Look out!" Tenten warned, covering Naruto's eyes to avoid being scarred.

"Is it really that scary?" Naruto asked.

"You do NOT want to know." Tenten answered as they too left for the Ramen Bar.

_**ICHIRAKU RAMEN BAR**_

The small group arrived at the quaint little ramen bar, Naruto entering first.

"Oi, Teuchi-jii!" Naruto called out, getting their attention. The people inside smiled at their favorite customer and welcomed him inside.

"Naruto-chan! Who are your new friends?" Teuchi asked as Ayame walked out to take their orders.

"Oh yeah...Kakashi-sensei asked Gai-sensei to help me train a bit during our three-day break! These are two of his students, Lee and Tenten-chan!" Naruto introduced them, a small rosy glow lighting up the girl's cheeks. No one else caught it, but Ayame sure did, her big sister senses tingling.

_'Oh ho...So this girl kinda likes him, huh? She's a cutie...'_ Ayame giggled inwardly as she and her father went back into the kitchen to get started on the food while they talked a little more.

As they talked more, a trio of people had been walking back from the bathhouse when one of them spotted a familiar shock of blond hair. The reason why they were there was because the Water Heater at their house went out and he tried to fix it himself, nearly blowing up the house in the the end, he caved in and decided that they should visit the bathhouse that night and a repairman would come in the morning.

_'I know that blond hair anywhere...Naruto must be having dinner. From what he told me, this is one of his favorite places in the village.'_ Sakura thought as she got her dad's attention.

"Hey dad...I'm feeling a little hungry. Think we could stop off for some Ramen?" Sakura asked her father.

"Hmm...Your mom's visiting her friends tonight, so why not? Be nice to catch up with Teuchi." He reasoned, since he'd burn water if he tried to cook.

"Ramen!" Natsumi cheered as they opened up the flap and sat down at the bar.

"Sakura-chan? You eat here, too?" He asked, having never seen her there before.

"Not really, but we went to a bathhouse earlier and we got hungry." She told him, her younger sister poking her head out from behind her.

"Naruto-sempai!" The small girl cheered loudly as she took the seat next to him in a flash.

"Friends of yours, Naruto-kun?" Gai asked, Tenten's interest piqued.

"Oh...This is my teammate, Sakura Haruno and her sister, Natsumi-chan." Naruto introduced as Gai greeted Daichi.

"Daichi-san...I haven't seen you in a while." Gai stated.

"It has been a while, Gai-san. How is your father doing?" Daichi asked of the elder Maito, Han. He was every bit as vigilant with his physical upkeep as his son and his own student, the one-armed 2nd Shinobi War vet still did handstand pushups in his frontyard every morning.

"Oh! He is still youthful as ever!" Gai boomed heartily, spooking little Natsumi.

"Eek!" She squealed, glomping onto the blond on her right, who sighed as Tenten and Sakura both chuckled at the cute sight of the little girl clutching him out of fear, but blushing brightly at the same time.

"She really seems to like him." Tenten commented.

"Yeah...I don't really know how it started, but she idolizes him. It's kind of funny that he has a 7 year old fan girl." Sakura giggled as Gai calmed down at Naruto's request, the expanded group setting to their meals.

"So...What are you doing with another team?" Sakura asked.

"Oh...They offered to let me train with them, so I took them up on it! Gai-sensei and Lee are beasts with taijutsu and Ten-chan's a genius with weapons!" Naruto told her.

"But...Why though?" She asked him honestly. She had already uncovered much of the mystery surrounding her mysterious teammate, but he was like one enigma after another.

"Well...After we got back from that mission, I thought that I should use this time to improve. " Naruto reasoned, making sense to Sakura.

"Oh. Well, that shows a good work ethic, at least. Just be careful and don't take it too far, okay?" She replied, still holding true to her word about being more friendly toward him.

"Heh...Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I can handle what they dish out!" He told her confidently with a thumbs up and one of his wide grins, the small girl next to him nearly melting.

_'Oh my...He really has no idea what effect he has on Tsumi-chan...'_ She giggled inwardly, her father noticing his youngest's reaction.

_'Looks like she's got her first crush and on Minato's son at that...Fate really is odd...'_ Daichi pondered with a soft grin as they continued.

Soon, the group finished their meals and were saying their farewells, Naruto heading home after a fulfilling day of training.

"Huh...Training with those guys wasn't so bad..." Naruto mused as he left for home just before the sun had set, while on a nearby building, Kakashi had been watching him.

"Looks like he's taking to it fairly well, just like I knew he would." Kakashi murmured with an eyesmile as he turned to head home, but an ANBU appeared before him.

"Kakashi-sempai...The Hokage and the Council want you to see them." A purple haired ANBU instructed him.

"Really now...What could they want?" He asked.

"I don't know that...But I'll guessing it has to do with Uzumaki-kun." She replied as they performed a tandem Body Flicker.

_**KONOHA COUNCIL CHAMBERS**_

"When will he get here, Sarutobi?" One man growled impatiently, Sarutobi frowning at the disrespect this man was showing.

"When he gets here, Councilman Kitamura." Sarutobi replied frankly as the civilian side groaned, but a knock was heard at the door.

_"Kakashi is here, Hokage-sama."_ A voice stated as they were beckoned inside.

"Finally...Another minute later and we would be pushing for your demotion, Hatake." Another council member, the fat and corpulent Gasho Tojouin sneered. The shinobi in the room scoffed at his threat, knowing he had no authority to do so as Sarutobi called the meeting to order.

"Now...This meeting was called to question the teaching ability of one Kakashi Hatake." Sarutobi read out, not agreeing with it himself.

"Really? I was under the impression I was doing a wonderful job if the dead last has improved so much under my watch." Kakashi stated casually, making the shinobi snicker but the civilian council was boiling over.

"You know damn well what we are talking about, Hatake! You are under strict orders to teach the Uchiha heir ONLY! We must have the Sharingan revived and see to it that he is kept satisfied, or he might go to another village!" Councilwoman Mira Kagutsu ranted, Kakashi's eye narrowing.

"On top of that...We demand to know where the de...Uzumaki brat got his hands on a weapon of such power. Uchiha-sama has demanded that the weapon go to him to help him in his ambition." Kitamura demanded smugly.

_'So...Sasuke complained to the council. Damn that brat...'_ Kakashi growled mentally as he replied.

"I take it that Uchiha-san has come running to you, having been denied what he wants. Well...That sword will never belong to him nor anyone else since the weapon has imprinted itself upon Uzumaki-san. It will allow no one else to even touch it. On top of that, if he tries to go to another village...His head comes off, just like any other traitor." Kakashi told them coldly, but before they could say anything, he spoke again.

"And another thing...You actually have the nerve to demand that I ignore my other students? Under who's authority?" Kakashi questioned them, his lone eye boring into them, daring them to come up with an excuse.

"Well...We can vote on it and if we have the majority vote, you WILL do as we say!" Gasho bellowed, his jowls flapping disgustingly.

"That's _if_ the vote turns your way." Inoichi Yamanaka reminded them.

"And I don't really see that happening." Tsume Inuzuka added.

"Well...Since this is a hotly debated topic, I say that we should just vote on it." Homura, one of the elders suggested.

He was usually neutral in all matters regarding the Jinchuuriki, but he would jump in if something drastic or foolish was to happen, same with Koharu. This time, these foolish civilians wanted to not only demote one of their strongest and most famous shinobi, but also stunt the growth of their future weapon. From what they gleaned from Sarutobi, the boy was taking his shinobi training seriously, damn near religiously and under Kakashi, the boy's father's only surviving student, he would possibly become even stronger than both his parents. This was something that needed to be encouraged, not suppressed. He and his old teammates voted against the civilians this time, much to their displeasure.

"This matter has been decided. The vote is 8:4 in favor of Kakashi carrying on at his discretion." Koharu announced, but another voice interrupted them.

"I see that the vessel has been taking the initiative in it's training. I move that he be given to me, so that I may form him into the prefect weapon." Danzou declared.

"No. That is something I will not even discuss. Naruto-kun's progress under Kakashi has been nothing short of phenominal, making me question the competency of our Academy instructors. I will NOT allow you to take him and make him into a lifeless doll that only listens to YOU." Sarutobi roared.

"You are being emotional and foolish, Hiruzen. A weapon has no need for emotions." Danzou replied, but he got a scathing response.

"That _weapon_ is a young boy, who had no control over what was done to him and who has been hated for something he never even knew until a few months ago. It's a damn miracle that he hasn't snapped and gone berserk, like so many other vessels have done before. Suna's own vessel was turned into a stone cold killer, killing enemy and allied shinobi alike with no remorse. You _idiots_ nearly created a self-fulfilling prophesy!" Tsume Inuzuka snarled, her maternal instincts taking over.

"That..._thing_ harbors the creature that nearly wiped us off the map that night! It must be kept weak so we can kill it!" Gasho shrieked.

_**"ENOUGH!"**_ Sarutobi thundered, his killing intent floodin the room and even making Danzou tremble, a bitter reminder of why Sarutobi was chosen to become Hokage instead of himself.

"This discussion is OVER. We will adjourn now, and you will NOT countermand my orders. If you do so, death will seem like a release. I will remind you here and now that my power and authority here is not purely political." Sarutobi warned. Not threatened, _warned_.

"Good day, Hokage-_sama_." Gasho sneered as they all filed out of the room, but the two elders remained behind.

"Kakashi...How is his training coming along?" Homura asked.

"Well..." Kakashi explained the some of the details behind Naruto's training and they applauded his use of cross training with other teams.

"A sensei must learn to use all resources available. I trust the Haruno girl has changed herself, as well? A sharp mind such as hers is wasted in a mere fangirl." Koharu inquired.

"She's making progress. She stood up for Naruto against Sasuke and the two seem to have bonded on a friendly level. This mission in Wave has helped them both grow exponentially." Kakashi explained.

"Then, save for young Sasuke, you seem to have things well in hand. We shall leave things to you." Homura concluded as the two old councilors bowed and exited the room.

"Hmm...Glad that's over for now. Now to deal with Sasuke. He could become a real problem in the future. Not just for the team, but for the village as a whole if he doesn't change his ways." Kakashi thought as he too left the room, bound for home where he and his Icha Icha could get more...Comfortable.

_'Ooh Yumika...You naughty little minx...'_ He giggled as he went home.

_A/N: There you have it folks...The second installment. Now, to explain myself. First up, Sakura's new outlook on life. As I said in the previous chapter, the horrors of death and combat can change people and it did just that for Sakura. Now, she asked her father for more info on her teammate and got more than she bargained for. She always was a smart girl, but her Sasuke affliction constantly got in the way. Now that she's kicked the habit, her mind and eyes are now truly open and accepting, Naruto being someone she felt she owed a massive apology to. She was sworn to secrecy on all that she was told, and in this fic, her father is one person she trusts above all others, so she will not say a damn thing. _

_ Sakura's mother...There are people who easily get swept along with the crowd and she is one of them. People like this can cause some real damage in large groups. The council...I have seen far too many fics we're the two elders hate Naruto with a passion, so I sought to break that cycle. Those two are mainly neutral with Naruto unless the situation is dire. The civilian council is the same as always, since for the sake of a plot device Naruto needs opposition in the village besides the villagers themselves._


End file.
